A Visit to the Barber

Running a business is very competitive so to get more customers, one has to be creative and offer something more than your rival.

A visit to the barber with my grandson Isaac proved this point.

This hair saloon targets children as well as the elderly.  The stylists offer haircuts without any hair wash but they do use some kind of equipment to blow your hair.

First a customer will have to pay for his haircut at the machine.  A haircut costs $12 but a senior citizen above 65 years of age is charged $10.  Once you have inserted your money, out comes a ticket.

You hold your ticket and queue up.  If there are many customers the waiting time can be more than half an hour.  When it is your turn, you just hand your ticket to the stylist who will then proceed to cut your hair.  She will drape you with a piece of cloth to protect your clothing before she begins to cut your hair. You can specify how you want your hair to be cut.

After the hair is cut, the stylist will use the equipment which looks like a vacuum cleaner and air blows the hair.  Then the cloth which is draped around you is removed and if you are a child, you are given two coins which you can insert into the machines for a free ride.

In this saloon, there was a Thomas the Train Engine and a Rugged Jeep.  My grandson had a ride in both. That is the highlight of the children’s trip to the barber.

Young children who love rides in these machines would definitely make return visits to have their hair cut and get free rides.

Isn’t this a creative gimmick to boost your business?

Another Year Bowing Out

Once again it is that time of the year when most people would be happily anticipating the new year which is just around the corner. 

Today is the second last day of 2015.  Many would be looking forward to ushering in the new year tomorrow night with a count down either at parties celebrated at home or outside of home.  In some cities there would be fireworks lighting up the skies to welcome the new year at the stroke of midnight.

For some it would have been a happy year, for others, a horrible one to be put behind.

To me, personally, it has been an annus horribilis.  Four friends departed this world for the other.  The news of their demise came as a shock, unexpected and most sobering because it drives home my own mortality.  When will my number be called, for these friends were my contemporaries.

Nevertheless, life has to move on and with the ending of this year, we hope for a better year that is waiting in the wings.

Wishing everyone of my friends a very Happy New Year as we welcome 2016.

Cheers!

My Grandchildren, My Joy

My grandchildren are in the “little red dot” located south of Peninsular Malaysia.   To see them I have to fly there, from Borneo Island across the South China Sea, a journey of approximately two and a half hours.  If there is a good tailwind, we may get there in two.  However, that said, Singapore being a very busy airport, we may have to circle to wait for our turn to land.

It is always such a joy to see the grandchildren, the two older ones doing ‘O’ and ‘A’ levels and the youngest, just a toddler aged two and a half years. 

The older two are serious students who are so busy at school that there’s no chance to see them on weekdays and it’s only during the weekend that a quick visit is managed.  Their schools are dead serious about competition and prime their students to excel with extra classes, etc.  Even their school holidays are curtailed and my granddaughter had to attend classes during the so-called school vacation!
Fortunately there’s whatsapp so we whatsapp frequently to “talk”.

The youngest, Isaac is always thrilled to visit his older cousins.  He gets the opportunity to go through the long tunnel that leads to Changi airport. His cousins stay not too far once we exit the tunnel.

Little things make little people happy and Isaac is no exception.  Sitting in a car on a small merry-go-round in a shopping mall, on a mechanical animal that ferries him around the crowded mall brings smiles to his face.

Back home, his mechanical toys like the little red, remote controlled car, the yellow digger and the latest one, the helicopter, keep him occupied.  The helicopter is controlled by his papa as it is too difficult for him at this stage and his room is small. The take-off and landing of the helicopter has him shrieking and laughing loudly as he gets very excited when the ‘copter lifts vertically.

On a more serious note, books keep him happy too and he helps to choose his own books from the children’s library which has an amazing variety.  Everything is automated so that young children can borrow and return the books on their own under the supervision of their parents.  I’m most impressed with Singapore’s use of technology and efficiency.

He is bi-lingual and knows which language to use when speaking to his two sets of grandparents. I’m truly amazed!!

Friends and Family Get-togethers

Nothing is more joyful than to get together with friends and family.  It doesn’t always have to be a special occasion.  However this time it so happened there were two special occasions which took place in Kuala Lumpur.  Before I left for KL, two of my old friends gave me a treat.

 The first one was a get-together over lunch to meet up with a former classmate in our class of ’59.  She was on transit before returning to Sydney and this was the first time I was seeing her after 54 years!!  We were teenagers when we parted after secondary school.  Now I’m a grandma!!

The next occasion was a meeting of former college mates on my birthday.  They didn’t know it was my birthday but when they saw me looking at the many messages on my phone, I had to tell them that they were birthday greetings.  So they got me a slice of cake to commemorate the occasion.

My birthday dinner was celebrated together with my family, siblings and nieces who happened to be available that evening.  Some were still in Melbourne so could not join us.  My son caught a bus up from Singapore to host the dinner and my nieces gave me a birthday cake.

It was a multi-course dinner which had us stuffed to the gills!!  Among the dishes was the roast suckling pig which was a favourite among all present.  There were birthday noodles with small longetivity buns & a sweet dessert to round off the evening.

 My two brothers gave me red packets while my two sisters gave me pretty gifts, one a beautiful bracelet and the other a lovely pair of dangling earrings.

Best of all was the company of my dear and loved ones.  My friends are special old friends who go back a long way and it was most joyful to catch up reminiscing over old times.

The Lord has blessed me richly with loving family members and wonderful friends. Praise be unto Him and Glory to His Name.